Hello,
I want to ask your opinion about one situation:
the maul or ruck was form in the center of the pitch. Blue 9 pass ball to Blue 10, Blue 10 pass to Blue 11, and after it ball goes to Blue 12. And Blue 12 is tackled by Red 2, who is coming from the back of the Blue goal line.
The situation is penalty. But I want to ask what would be if Blue 11 before pass to Blue 12 would run 5 metres with ball , not crossing the ruck and maul offside line? Under the Law 11 if Blue 11 runs five metres with ball so Red 2 is not offside?

stuart3826

21-08-09, 07:08

If I'm reading this correctly (and I have only just got up) the ruck has ended and the ball is in open play. It's been passed 3 times and players are running all over the place - therefore no offside exists. Someone more experienced will no doubt pick me to pieces now!

Arturas

21-08-09, 08:08

But the pass under the rule is not the thing thich make you out of offside. Only your team players could make you onside. Under the rules I found that only if the player with ball run five metres there will be no offside to offside players, and the game becomes open. So the player in offside position must retire before his teammates if nobody runs with ball and just do passes.

stuart3826

21-08-09, 08:08

I've had time to collect the law reference now -

11.3 BEING PUT ONSIDE BY OPPONENTS
In general play, there are three ways by which an offside player can be put onside by an
action of the opposing team. These three ways do not apply to a player who is offside under
the 10-Metre Law.
(a) Runs 5 metres with ball. When an opponent carrying the ball runs 5 metres, the offside
player is put onside.
(b) Kicks or passes. When an opponent kicks or passes the ball, the offside player is put
onside.
(c) Intentionally touches ball. When an opponent intentionally touches the ball but does not
catch it, the offside player is put onside.

So by the action of 9's pass to 10, the offside player has been put onside and may make the tackle

dave_clark

21-08-09, 09:08

we would seem to have our first Lithuanian member. welcome!

Arturas

21-08-09, 09:08

I think we need to use 11.8 rule, where it is written that passes in not taking out of outside.

Davet

21-08-09, 10:08

The full Laws are available at the iRB website: see

http://www.irb.com/lawregulations/laws/index.html

You can select the laws in a few different Languages.

Scroll to Law 11, then click on choice of Language.

OB..

21-08-09, 11:08

I agree with Arturas that 11.8 is what matters. Merely passing the ball does not put a player onside if he was retiring from an offside position.

I remember this happening at a crucial stage in a Varsity match. Cambridge won a ruck near the right hand corner and passed the ball to the blindside. The winger was promptly tackled by a cheating (tautology?!) Oxford forward retiring from the previous ruck. The excellent referee awarded Cambridge a penalty.

Dixie

21-08-09, 11:08

Law 11.3 gives three things that Blue can do, that put an offside Red player back onside. Passing the ball is one of them. However, this law is applied to a player offside following a kick ahead by his own team.

Was Red 2 offside at the ruck/maul? If so, he remains offside until he gets behind the previous ruck's offside line (the back foot of the last player in that ruck). This is Law 11.8.

So, if the offside line at the ruck was the halfway line, and Red 2 made his tackle in the Blue half of the pitch, I'd rule him offside.
When a ruck, maul, scrum or lineout forms, a player who is offside and is retiring as required by Law remains offside even when the opposing team wins possession and the
ruck, maul, scrum or lineout has ended. The player is put onside by retiring behind the applicable offside line. No other action of the offside player and no action of that player’s team mates can put the offside player onside.

If the player remains offside the player can be put onside only by the action of the opposing team. There are two such actions:
- Opponent runs 5 metres with ball. When an opponent carrying the ball has run 5 metres, the offside player is put onside. An offside player is not put onside when an opponent passes the ball. Even if the opponents pass the ball several times, their action does not put the offside player onside.
- Opponent kicks. When an opponent kicks the ball, the offside player is put onside.